The Rex sits on the corner of Nguyen Hue and Le Loi, which is the middle of Saigon in every sense — the pedestrianized boulevard runs from the People's Committee building at its door down to the river, and Ben Thanh Market and Lam Son Square are each five minutes away.
Its history is the reason people book it. The building went up in 1927 as a French car showroom, was rebuilt as the Rex complex between 1959 and 1975, became the state-run Ben Thanh Hotel in 1976 and took the Rex name back in 1986. In between, its roof was where the US command held its daily press briefings, which the correspondents christened the Five O'Clock Follies. The Rooftop Garden Bar is still there — topiary elephants, a crown of neon on the parapet, a view straight down Nguyen Hue — and it is one of the two rooftop bars in this city that everybody should see once.
The hotel today is a large, comfortable, slightly old-fashioned five-star run by Saigontourist: 286 rooms across the original block and the 2003 extension, five restaurants, an outdoor pool, a spa, a gym and an arcade of shops and tailors. It is not the sharpest hotel in Saigon and does not claim to be. What it is, is enormous rooms by local standards, a genuinely central address, and a lot of history in the corridors.
For our purposes: you are fifteen minutes' walk or a $2 Grab from Bui Vien, five from the Le Thanh Ton alleys, and on top of the rooftop and club district. Ben Thanh metro station is a five-minute walk.
On visitors, we have nothing confirmed and will not invent it. This is a state-owned property with a formal front desk, and Vietnamese hotels must register everyone who sleeps in a room with the local authorities. Ask before you book if it matters; the guest-friendly hotels explainer tells you what to ask, and the Saigon hotels page has the alternatives.
| Tier | Upscale five-star, 286 rooms |
|---|---|
| From | About $120 a night, Aug 2026 |
| Walk to Lam Son Square rooftops | ~5 min |
| Walk to Bui Vien | ~15 min, or $2 by Grab |
| Pool | Outdoor pool, spa and gym |
| Guest-friendly | Unconfirmed — ask before booking |
Pros
- + Historic Rooftop Garden Bar over Nguyen Hue
- + Dead-centre address on the pedestrian boulevard
- + Large rooms, outdoor pool, five restaurants
- + Five minutes from Ben Thanh and Lam Son Square
- + More character than any modern five-star in the city
Cons
- − Visitor policy unconfirmed — state-owned, formal front desk
- − Dated in places compared with newer five-stars
- − Rooftop is busy with tour groups at sunset
- − Fifteen minutes on foot from Bui Vien
